Presidents from both parties, including Trump, have let the budget grow and grow. The White House is trying to make changes on its own.

The full extent of the order was not immediately clear, but the directive sent to government agencies on Monday threatened to paralyze a vast swath of federal programs.

The first major domestic policy reversal of the Republican president's new term came after one federal judge had temporarily blocked the freeze and before another judge was due to

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt vehemently defended the administration’s sweeping freeze on federal aid, arguing Tuesday in her first press briefing that it was critical to scrutinize the scope of the government’s spending.

We have a constitutional crisis,” Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley said of Team Trump's latest scheme. It's worth appreciating what the label means.